UK asset manager Schroders Plc has closed its short position in government bonds, citing the increased risk of recession. Patrick Brenner , chief investment officer for multi-asset at the £800 billion investment firm ($1.08 trillion), said the switch reflects concerns that the Middle East conflict is now more likely to hurt economic growth than lift price pressures. On Thursday, oil prices reached...
UK asset manager Schroders Plc has closed its short position in government bonds, citing the increased risk of recession. Patrick Brenner , chief investment officer for multi-asset at the £800 billion investment firm ($1.08 trillion), said the switch reflects concerns that the Middle East conflict is now more likely to hurt economic growth than lift price pressures. On Thursday, oil prices reached a four-year high of $126 a barrel, stoking recession fears while threatening to intensify price pressures in a so-called stagflationary scenario. “Whereas previously our risk scenarios were heavily skewed towards inflation with virtually no risk of recession, we now see a more balanced trade-off between inflation and growth,” Brenner told clients in a note. “Against this backdrop, we have closed our short government bond position.” He said he’s upgraded European bonds, in particular Italy, seeing the current expectations for interest-rate hikes as excessive. While the European Central Bank is expected to hold rates steady later on Thursday, traders are wagering it will deliver three rate hikes by year-end to combat the impact of higher energy prices. The sharp rises in bond yields across the region imply that valuations are no longer expensive, “removing a key driver behind our negative stance on government bonds over the past six months,” Brenner added. Bonds have underperformed in recent weeks as the conflict has roiled global supply chains, lifted inflation expectations and raised the prospect of additional government spending to soothe the impact of higher fuel prices. However, with the war now in its third month, many investors are concerned economic activity is likely to suffer a greater hit. Recent data releases globally have confirmed those fears, with German retail sales and Purchasing Manager’s Index highlighting the risks for Europe. Eventually, that could undermine the case for interest rate hikes. Brenner said he’s maintaining an underweight position in US bon...
Welcome to the Thursday issue of India Edition; I’m Menaka Doshi . Each week, I bring you a ringside view of the billionaires, businesses and policy decisions behind India’s rise as an emerging economic powerhouse. You can subscribe here , and share feedback with me here . This week: How made-in-India AI hopes to take on global rivals, a homegrown high-speed trading unicorn and a $25 billion war b...
Welcome to the Thursday issue of India Edition; I’m Menaka Doshi . Each week, I bring you a ringside view of the billionaires, businesses and policy decisions behind India’s rise as an emerging economic powerhouse. You can subscribe here , and share feedback with me here . This week: How made-in-India AI hopes to take on global rivals, a homegrown high-speed trading unicorn and a $25 billion war bill. Sarvam 2.0 Pratyush Kumar has all the bearings of a natural born visionary. On Wednesday, the 38 - year old co-founder of India’s first homegrown AI company , Sarvam AI, held a Bloomberg auditorium full of skeptics and luddites in thrall as he wove lofty ideas like per capita intelligence consumption and universal basic AI into a business plan for Sarvam’s next phase of growth. Let me unpack it for you. So far, India’s AI journey has taken two routes. There’s the big tech route — where giants like OpenAI have used deep- discounting to entice over 100 million Indians, mostly 30 years and younger, to spend hours using ChatGPT to work or code. India is OpenAI’s second-biggest market outside the US, sending back free data and the promise of big subscription revenue over time. Then there is Sarvam (and a few others) — with much smaller, indigenous models built on domestic data and adept in several local languages — pitching to Indian businesses to power their internal and external processes at “affordable price points.” Kumar said after the February launch of Sarvam’s 30B and 105B models that several organizations have approached it to build custom versions. “They would like to be able to build a model they can deploy locally at their own GPU infrastructure, which thereby keeps all data safe, secure, but importantly, gives them a chance to play in a positive AI world.” Ostensibly the two routes will co-exist though the question is which one will play a bigger role in transforming India into an AI-powered nation. Unsurprisingly, Kumar picks Sarvam’s. “Our view is that the pe...
sefa ozel/iStock via Getty Images Antero Resources ( AR ) announced per share earnings (diluted) of $1.72 that easily beat the previous first quarter earnings per share of $.66. The market may not value nonrecurring earnings (thanks to winter storm Fern and the La Niña cold winter in general) because they have little to do with operations. However, this is a firm with an uncanny record of leveragi...
sefa ozel/iStock via Getty Images Antero Resources ( AR ) announced per share earnings (diluted) of $1.72 that easily beat the previous first quarter earnings per share of $.66. The market may not value nonrecurring earnings (thanks to winter storm Fern and the La Niña cold winter in general) because they have little to do with operations. However, this is a firm with an uncanny record of leveraging up (in this case through an acquisition) just before good things happen. The kind of market timing that this firm has demonstrated time and again is extremely hard to beat. Luck counts a whole lot in this business. Repeated luck may possibly be a sign of very good management. Last Article The last article noted that this was starting out as a cold winter. This has to be combined with the article before that, which talks about the deal management made. Understand that management sold some acreage and borrowed the rest to finance that deal, and then this winter hit. The fourth quarter turned out to be a precursor for a great first quarter. Now this management kept the debt ratio in bounds because this is an investment grade idea. But deleveraging quickly is often the motto in this industry to make financial leverage work. The latest announcement states that the acquisition will lower average corporate costs for the year. That means that this whole idea was self-financing without any help from the weather. But having covered this company for about 10 years, this management has long managed to be at the right place at the right time repeatedly. This fantastic La Niña winter produced lots of cold weather that has begun a deleveraging process ahead of schedule. This management makes this look so easy it is not funny. The bodies of other corporations that tried to imitate this (being in the right place at the right time) are under my profile. From that alone, this is something that is extremely hard to imitate. Good management outperforms when least expected. This is an example...
Peng Jing The disappearance of a well-connected Chongqing lawyer is sending shockwaves through local political and business circles as China’s anti-corruption drive deepens in the southwestern megacity. Authorities on April 19 took away Peng Jing, founding partner of Chongqing Jingsheng Law Firm, according to people familiar with the matter. A local political source familiar with Peng said she was...
Peng Jing The disappearance of a well-connected Chongqing lawyer is sending shockwaves through local political and business circles as China’s anti-corruption drive deepens in the southwestern megacity. Authorities on April 19 took away Peng Jing, founding partner of Chongqing Jingsheng Law Firm, according to people familiar with the matter. A local political source familiar with Peng said she was taken away by China’s top anti-graft agency.
aquatarkus Volkswagen ( VWAGY ) reported a 1 4% decline in Q1 profitability, missing expectations as tariffs, weak demand, and geopolitical pressures weighed on performance. The German carmaker's Q1 operating profit fell about 14% to €2.5B, below forecasts, and r evenue dropped 2.5% to ~€75.7B, also missing estimates of €77.6B. Operating margin came in at ~3.3%, highlighting profitability pressure...
aquatarkus Volkswagen ( VWAGY ) reported a 1 4% decline in Q1 profitability, missing expectations as tariffs, weak demand, and geopolitical pressures weighed on performance. The German carmaker's Q1 operating profit fell about 14% to €2.5B, below forecasts, and r evenue dropped 2.5% to ~€75.7B, also missing estimates of €77.6B. Operating margin came in at ~3.3%, highlighting profitability pressure. Weak demand in China and the U.S., alongside tariffs and rising competition, hit volumes and margins. "The world is undergoing fundamental change – and we are aligning our strategy consistently. Wars, geopolitical tensions, trade barriers, stricter regulations, and intense competition are creating headwinds. In this challenging environment, we have managed to make tangible progress," said Oliver Blume, CEO. For FY 2026, the company expects revenue growth of 0% to 3%, with an operating margin of 4.0% to 5.5%. In its automotive division, the group forecasts an investment ratio of 11% to 12%, net cash flow of €3B to €6B, and net liquidity of €32B to €34B. More on Volkswagen AG Volkswagen: Execution Visibility Improves (Buy Confirmed) Volkswagen AG (VWA:CA) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript Volkswagen AG (VWA:CA) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript Volkswagen Q4 operating profit plunges 45% on volume slump; introduces FY26 outlook Historical earnings data for Volkswagen AG
Vance Reportedly Questions Pentagon's Rosy Assessment Of Iran War Vice President JD Vance is reportedly questioning assessments from the Department of War about the effectiveness of the US military campaign against Iran . According to two senior White House officials cited by The Atlantic , Vance has expressed skepticism about recent Pentagon estimates on the depletion of US munitions since the la...
Vance Reportedly Questions Pentagon's Rosy Assessment Of Iran War Vice President JD Vance is reportedly questioning assessments from the Department of War about the effectiveness of the US military campaign against Iran . According to two senior White House officials cited by The Atlantic , Vance has expressed skepticism about recent Pentagon estimates on the depletion of US munitions since the launch of Operation Epic Fury. A report released last week by the Center for Strategic and International Studies found the Pentagon used roughly half of its stockpiles of advanced interceptors and standoff munitions in the first five weeks of the conflict, which we reported here . But the Pentagon has consistently downplayed and rejected such negative assessments. via Reuters That report found that the US military tore through nearly half its Patriot interceptor inventory while heavily draining multiple other critical missile stockpiles. The Atlantic article presents a Vance team which carefully seeks to avoid conflict with Trump and his top cabinet officials, by backing the Pentagon's rosy picture of the war in public, while privately pushing back within internal deliberations : Two senior administration officials told us that the vice president has queried the accuracy of the information the Pentagon has provided about the war. He has also expressed his concerns about the availability of certain missile systems in discussions with President Trump , several people familiar with the situation told us. The consequences of a dramatic drawdown in munitions reserves are potentially dire: U.S. forces would need to draw from these same stockpiles to defend Taiwan against China, South Korea against North Korea, and Europe against Russia . Vance is concerned that the heavy use of weapons against Iran is degrading America's readiness in the scenario it had to fight wars in Europe and East Asia. Already, the US has had to transfer major anti-air defense systems from the territories of ...
Wall Street strategist Tom Lee thinks Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) could hit a price of $62,000 within the next few years. Right now, it's trading around the $2,300 price level. So, if he's right, Ethereum investors could see a return of 2,500% within a relatively short period of time. But is Ethereum really capable of soaring in value? From my perspective, there are a number of reasons to be skeptical ...
Wall Street strategist Tom Lee thinks Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) could hit a price of $62,000 within the next few years. Right now, it's trading around the $2,300 price level. So, if he's right, Ethereum investors could see a return of 2,500% within a relatively short period of time. But is Ethereum really capable of soaring in value? From my perspective, there are a number of reasons to be skeptical about the $62,000 price prediction. For one, the all-time high for Ethereum is just $4,954. So Lee is predicting a price that's 12.5 times higher than Ethereum has ever soared. Continue reading